Never a Time to Overshare

There is much ongoing concern about amounts of screen time used, the do's and don'ts of online etiquette, cyber bullying and how secure Tik Tok wasn't after all. But what of it pertains to you if you're just having fun posting online with your friends?

You don't need to look any further than the headlines over the weekend about the US Supreme Court seat recently vacated by the passing of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsberg. Now someone, who probably never dreamed she'd one day be nominated by the President of the United States for a position to the most important court in our country, has been.

Judge Amy Coney Barrett's life is presently being dissected by the American public in minute detail. And understand that this is absolutely appropriate for anyone considered for such a powerful position. Anything she has ever said or written will be scrutinized - unfortunately some of it will be taken out of context and used against her by her opponents.

This is a good reminder that what you enter on social media can have repercussions, for good or bad, far down the road of your life. You do not know what position you may one day seek, a scholarship you want to apply for or a school you'd like to attend. When employers or colleges, for example, do a background search of you, you don't want them to discover such things as bad behavior party pics or an emotional rant. One young girl I know got engaged, for example, and had to scramble to delete all those things before her new in-laws to-be got wind of them. You get the picture . . .

When Facebook really got going, several colleagues and I discussed how much of our personal information we really wanted on the Internet for public consumption. Privacy and retaining a certain level of professional decorum were primary foci. That was a worthwhile discussion that I took to heart, and I recommend the same to you. Social media certainly occupies an important space in our lives and businesses. It can be the best place to generally catch up on family and friends. But determine your own smart boundaries, and then stick with them.

Bottom line, as always, avoid cultivating problems. From the many who have regretted posting comments in anger or who overshare personal info and then have it derail them in some way, I'm sure they would pass along the same advice!